Jailed Afghan rape victim wins pardon after agreeing to marry attacker

The 19-year-old woman, whose name is Gulnaz, was one of the subjects of a documentary recently produced by the European Union, highlighting the phenomenon of rape victims being imprisoned for the "moral crime" of having sex outside marriage, even against their will.

Karzai's office said in a statement Thursday evening that the president had accepted a recommendation from a special judicial committee that the woman be pardoned and freed -- "taking into consideration the consent of both sides for a conditional wedlock."